Australia’s homegrown nuclear submarine plan revealed

Homegrown contractors have been assured there will be ample work domestically for the Australian construction of nuclear subs in Adelaide.

Defence Industry Minister Pat Conroy vowed to develop a homegrown workforce of more than 2000 skilled workers in the next five years, required for the domestic construction of nuclear-powered submarines that will make Australia “safe and secure.”

On a three-day trip to the UK to assess the British approach to developing nuclear-powered submarines, Mr Conroy assured homegrown contractors there would still be ample work domestically.

Pat Conway, left, meets with Pal Jonson in the UK. Picture: Twitter

And he pledged tens of thousands of workers boosted by skilled migrants working in Adelaide on this “nation-building project.”

Revealing “great lessons” from a visit to a BAE Shipyard at Barrow-in-Furness in Cumbria, Mr Conroy said there was a need for Australia “to really invest in skills and start that pipeline of work right now to provide and grow those jobs.”

Pat Conway with Ambassador to Germany and Liechtenstein, Philip Green (thirrd from left) and his team in the UK. Picture: Twitter

“I was incredibly impressed by the scale of the enterprise there. They’ve been making submarines for 120 years. And they’ve been making ships for 50 years and there’s some great lessons for Australia out of that experience,” he said.

“We want to train apprentices as part of this project and grow the workforce organically – we can’t poach from somewhere else,” he continued.

“An apprentice working in this area could work 40 years on this project on the most advanced technology in the world – they’ll be helping to make Australia a safer and secure place.

“We need 2000 skilled workers in the next five years. And that’s our initial commitment, but we’ll see tens of thousands of workers working in Adelaide.”

Mr Conroy, who said his earlier trip to the Munich Security Conference was a success, also pledged Australia’s continuing support to Ukraine ahead of the first anniversary of Russia’s invasion.

“The Munich Security Conference, which really is the premier Security Conference of Europe if not the globe, and in representing Australia, I came with two key messages for the rest of the world,” he said.

“One is that Australia will stay in the Ukraine for as long as it takes. And secondly, while we maintain our commitment, we all need to keep a focus on the challenges of the Indo-Pacific.”

“I was quite surprised by the level of engagement the rest of the world has in the Indo-Pacific and their interest in Australian experience, but I was really inspired by the strength of conviction to support Ukraine.

“I didn’t detect any flagging in the intent of supporting the brave people of that country in their struggle.”

During his stay, he is holding a series of high-level talks with counterparts and defence industry representatives – including with the Minister of State for Defence Procurement, the Rt Hon Alex Chalk MP, and Minister of State for the Indo-Pacific, the Rt Hon Anne-Marie Trevelyan MP.